A bullet of mass is fired horizontally into a wooden block of mass suspended by a…
PHYSICS · Multi-part · AP · Physics 1: Algebra-based · Linear Momentum · Linear Momentum
Problem
A bullet of mass 20g is fired horizontally into a wooden block of mass 2.0kg suspended by a light string so that it can swing freely like a pendulum. The bullet embeds itself completely in the block, and the combined system rises vertically through a height of 0.15m before momentarily coming to rest.
(i) Derive an expression for the speed V acquired by the block–bullet system immediately after impact in terms of the rise h.
(ii) Using part (i), obtain an expression for the initial speed v of the bullet.
(iii) Calculate the numerical value of v for the data given. Take g=9.8ms−2.